Susie in Lithuania: Migration

In order to be in Lithuania each year I have to apply for a Temporary Residency Permit (or TRP card). This means a trip down to the Migration office. This is one of the more stressful and anxiety inducing things that I have to do while in Lithuania. The Migration office is located in an old Soviet building on the south end of town. The halls are dark and narrow. The people are very serious and aren't usually willing (or possibly able) to speak English to you. The people there have the power to decide whether or not you get to stay in the country. If there is a problem with your application and you aren't able to speak the language (which is the case for me), you are up a creek. When I went last year I went with another expat who had a fair amount of Lithuanian language skill, so I was able to rely on her to communicate with the personnel.

This year I had to go during the summer, so I went alone to the Migration office. I was pretty anxious, but knew it was just something that I had to do, so I did. It actually went very well! I arrived early and was sitting on the bench outside the office. A woman walked by and asked me a question in Lithuanian. I didn't know what she asked and just said, "TRP." She nodded and walked into another office. Less than a minute later another woman walked out of the same office, looked at me, motioned at me to follow and walked into another office. I followed her and gave her the packet that our campus migration office had prepared for me. She processed the packet in less than 3 minutes. At one point she needed me to sign somewhere, so she pointed and explained that to me - in English, no less! I took the rest of my stuff with me and walked out the door feeling like I had accomplished something big. It really wasn't a big deal, but to small town Susie it sure felt like a big deal! I hope it goes just as smoothly in August when I go back to pick up my TRP card.